


Better Half of the Blade

by FreckledAuthor



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Abusive Parents, Adopted Children, Alternate Universe - Creatures & Monsters, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Arranged Marriage, Brother-Sister Relationships, Castles, Cutesy, Dragons, Emotions, Enemies to Lovers, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Forbidden Love, Freedom, Happy Ending, Hate to Love, Homophobia, Horseback Riding, Hurt/Comfort, Identity Issues, Light Angst, Love, M/M, Magic, Multi, No Smut, Play Fighting, Princes & Princesses, Rebellion, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Swordfighting, Teaching, Training, War, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:22:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24935998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FreckledAuthor/pseuds/FreckledAuthor
Summary: Roman King has been saving princesses from dragon infested towers since he was 15. But the classic Prince Charming lifestyle isn't all it's dreamed to be. With a thirst for freedom and to escape his controlling, toxic parents, will he be able to leave his cutthroat kingdom behind? Or be forced to pretend to be someone he's not.☆ ☆ ☆Virgil Knight felt like an impostor in his own home. Adopted into royalty he felt more like a lucky orphan than a prince. With a protective mother and no knowledge of combat, will his destiny be more lessons with his tutor? Or will he finally find himself beyond the castle walls?☆ ☆ ☆When Roman rescues Virgil from a tower and ends up in an arranged marriage with him, the two are extremely against it. Will they be able to stop their yelling and learn from each other? Or will Roman's parents succeed in sending Virgil home before the month's end?
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Logic | Logan Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Comments: 18
Kudos: 43





	1. Let Yourself be Known

**Author's Note:**

> Warning, at the time of me writing this, this isn't a complete work. Which means for future updates the warnings below may be obsolete. If this occurs I will leave the warning at the top of the chapter containing the trigger. For now, here are the triggers contained in this story:  
> Swearing  
> Homophobia  
> Sexual innuendos and mentions of sex (no smut)  
> Violence  
> Minor disturbing imagery  
> Remus  
> Thank you for reading! Please enjoy!

The dashing prince dodged the flames being blasted towards him and dived behind a boulder of rubble. His hands were shaking and bloodied, but nothing he hadn't experienced before. He tightened the grip on his sword, his reflection gleaming in the polished metal. "God, I need to bathe," he mumbled under his breath. 

A thunderous, hoarse roar erupted as the dragon's barbed tail swung and broke the boulder into pebbles. The hero jumped to his feet with his sword raised. When the beast attempted to fry him with yet another fiery blast the young prince slid under the dragon's torso with his sword between his teeth. He lunged on top of some stable looking debris and jumped for the second-floor ledge a few feet above his head. Heat radiated against his back as he struggled to pull himself up by the fingertips. Burns simmered into his skin like a million bee stings. His vision became momentarily spotty as he ground his teeth together in uncontrollable pain. The smell of his own burning flesh filled the room. 

The hero pulled himself up and started to double over, but he couldn't, not with the dragon ready to burn him to a crisp. He dragged himself across the floor until he grasped a shield he kindly borrowed from a victim of the beast. Shakily standing he met eye to eye with the dragon. A shame really. Such beautiful majestic creatures with such black hearts. Yellow scales rippled across its whole body, and white horns curled around its slim face. The most magnificent red eyes really. If only they weren't trying to kill the young hero. The prince sprinted head-on at the dragon. An anticipated blow of fire came rushing at him. Using the shield to deflect the flame, he jumped on the dragon's snout and ran up to the top of its head. The dragon froze a moment in confusion. In its moment of paralyzation, the young man raised his sword above his head and plunged the point into the dragon's skull. A howl of agony pierced through the silence of the castle. The prince quickly ran and jumped safely back onto the second floor as the beast collapsed lifelessly on the cold stone below. He fell to his knees gasping for air. His now dirty sword cluttered to the ground beside him. 

After a moment to gather his composure, he stood and started running up the many flights of stairs. A single wooden door stood alone at the very top. He knocked lightly on the door, "Princess Harmony?" He said breathlessly, "I've come to rescue you my fair maiden," the knob started to turn. 

Stepped out a beautiful young princess. Short fierce curls made their way down the sides of her face and swept just above her lush ebony shoulders. Her lips were glossed and full, only to match with her dark brown eyes full of life and intelligence. No doubt one of the most beautiful women the prince had ever rescued. 

She let out a squeal squeezing her eyes shut and throwing her arms around his neck. The prince hugged her for a moment before scooping her up bridal style and carrying her down the long flights of crumbly stairs. Harmony kept her eyes watching the prince's face, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. How he hated what was inevitably coming next. He stepped out of the tower and placed the princess on her own two feet. She smiled and looked up at him with his great height of 6'1. The princess took handfuls of her red dress into either hand and curtsied deeply towards her savior. "May I know the name of my hero?" She asked sweetly, standing back upright. "My name is Prince Roman King of the Amaregena Kingdom," he bowed and kissed her hand.

The princess smiled and gained a light blush, "well Prince Roman, as you know I'm Princess Harmony, and it would be my honor to give my hand to such a nobleman. You shall escort me home and I will introduce you to my parents, and after that, with your father's blessing we shall get married at the first sight of dusk," she smiled, her eyes spaced out as if dreaming of the wedding. "Um," he laughed nervously and began rubbing the back of his neck, "I cannot my lady. I'm afraid I'm uninterested in romance at the moment, however, I know of many courageous princes that would give their right hand to be your husband," Roman smiled apologetically. 

It never felt great. He'd turned down twenty-three princesses just that year. They all looked the same after getting rejected, a mix of sadness and anger. "Am I not good enough for you?!" He remembered one of the princesses screaming at him red in the face, but for his own sanity, he could never bring himself to accept. 

Her face dropped for a moment before shooting him an icy glare. "Fine, I didn't want you anyway!" She stormed off before he could get in another word. 

Although she was lying horribly. Roman was every princess's dream. Tanned dark skin with a lean muscular build. Dark burgundy hair swept effortlessly to the side out of his face. Piercing green eyes brighter than fresh summer mint leaves, filled with excitement and bravery. Last but not least his smile. The most princely smile any man could possess. The perfect balance of confidence and charm to go along with one dimple that made the village women swoon. 

"I guess I don't need to escort her home," Roman mumbled to himself as he mounted his steed. 

He gripped the reins tightly with his blistered hands and sighed in remorse for the princess. Roman straightened his back out, his burns screaming in protest. 

He quickly flicked the reins, "home Maximus!" He commanded. Maximus took off into the forest the way they had come. This gave the prince a moment to be alone with his thoughts. Riding had always given him a sense of freedom. Being away from his parents, feeling the sting of the wind whip past his face, his steed's strong gallop. It felt like he was flying. If only he could feel this way all the time. Alas, like every prince before him, he was destined to marry a princess. 

☆ ☆ ☆

The dark prince ran as fast as his legs could carry him. His heart pounded and breathing hitched to a hundred. He hid behind a small pillar in hopes to capture the fearsome creature that roamed his land. A menacing shadow stretched across the earth as the beast approached further. He stood in hiding, paralyzed, and held his breath in anticipation. Three... he thought, two...one! The young prince jumped out and grabbed his sister around her waist, lifting the small girl off the garden lawn. "Virgil!" She laughed as she tried to squirm out of her big brother's grasp. 

He smiled a tad as she calmed down from her giggle fit. "Ah-ha! I have finally conquered the mighty beast!" He proclaimed, spinning her around a few times before settling the petite princess back on the ground. 

The little girl attempted her best stab at a roar before Virgil started chasing her around the garden playing a small game of tag. The two were nine years apart, Virgil being seven-teen and Charlotte being eight. Their whole family was very close despite their mother having to focus all her time into ruling the Vigorium kingdom. The prince picked up the princess and carried her back inside. 

Their mother, the queen, sat elegantly on a throne of gold and velvet. Her arms folded in her lap as a proper woman of respect, yet, despite her vulnerable appearance the village learned to fear her scorn. Everything about Vigorium was strange and different. It was ruled by a single queen with two adopted children. Unlike every other prince, her son was not off fighting beasts and saving princesses in hopes to find a wife. Nor was he honing his skills with a sword or bow. He was studying how to become a proper king like all princes should be. Not taking advantage of kidnapped princesses to find some silly wife. 

She smiled warmly at her approaching children, "hello," she greeted. "Hello mother," Virgil said, bowing his head. "I have work for you two," the queen declared, "the healers are running out of confervo berries, and you two need to get some time out of the castle walls. Tomorrow you'll venture into the forest and retrieve them." The dark prince groaned in protest, "why can't a guard come with us? It'd put me so much more at ease," the elder complained. "You must learn to fend for yourself Virgil, if you're going to be king one day you must learn with experience" she explained calmly. 

Virgil sighed and nodded, setting Charlotte down. 

He made his way up the stairs to his chambers. The prince looked around the familiar room. His bed was large and in the center of the room, to the side was a small dresser that held various knick-knacks. In his closet, many rows of royal clothing lined the space. Robes made of the finest Latin cloth, crowns woven from gold and amethyst, and most importantly in the very back a set of the strongest amor, of course, he's never gotten to use it. 

He strolled out onto the balcony, the sun was starting to set and it was the most beautiful sight. Dark blues and purples bleeding into the orange of the setting sun. The thick trees that marked the castle walls were blocking the view of the outside world. At a young age, Virgil learned if he were to stand on top of the railing he could see over the trees and gawk at the world before him, although he longed to see the beauty he never stood on the barrier again. He was always too afraid to fall. 

The prince sighed and ran his hand through his almost raven black hair, what am I doing here? He thought, I'm not even an actual prince, just a lucky orphan. She could have picked any other boy to be the prince, but no, she chose me, damn. He leaned on the rail and hummed an old nursery rhyme his mother used to sing him. Suddenly, something as small as a leaf floated down and landed beside Virgil's hand. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was not a leaf, but a red butterfly. He scoffed at the insect. 

His mother used to say red butterflies were a sign of love and life long-happiness. She would laugh and say, "I saw a red butterfly just before I saw you at the orphanage. That's how I knew you were my son," younger Virgil would smile proudly, believing every word that came out of his mother's mouth. 

He gently blew on it and watched it flutter away into the twilight sky. A warm breeze ruffled his hair as he spoke his last words before turning in for the night. "If any chance of love is waiting for me," he closed his eyes and parted his pink lips, "let yourself be known."


	2. My Fair Prince

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Thank you for all the support for chapter 1 it really means a lot! I've decided that I'll, hopefully, be posting a new chapter every Saturday. However, we all know writer's block strikes at the most inconvenient times so please forgive me if I miss an update. Thank you and enjoy!

It was almost midnight by the time Roman returned home. A full moon cast beams of light across the land, allowing the prince to navigate out of the enchanted forest. He led Maximus to the stables and bid him a good night before entering the palace. It was large and grand, as all castles should be, with tall narrow towers erupting from the base. A vastly sized glass stained window of his father's crowning was front and centered. The coloring left a yellow hue partly coating his face as he stepped foot in the throne room. 

"How'd it go? Have you found a wife?" His father sprung at him. "Obviously not," his mother chimed in, "he hasn't brought a girl and he looks disheveled! His hands have bled through the wraps, his face is covered in soot, and his clothing is shredded! What princess would take him looking like that?" She scolded, uninterestedly twirling a lock of red hair between her fingers. 

Roman forced a cracked smile, "I have not found a wife, however, my back is completely burnt and my hands are shaking, so I'd prefer to be left alone for a moment whilst I clean up," he spoke, withholding many words he wished to cry out. The king sighed deeply and dropped his chin to his chest, "very well," he said, picking it back up, "get cleaned up and go to your room, you get a day off tomorrow," Roman nodded and walked off. 

He summoned a household servant and asked them to prepare his bath, meanwhile, he walked to the healer's office to treat his wounded back. An older man, in his early thirties, by the name of Patton greeted him. His dirty blonde curls bobbed as he lifted his freckled face towards Roman, smiling warmly. His frosty blue eyes scrunched up behind his thick glass frames. Despite his age, he looked youthful and could even pass as Roman's companion if needed. "Hi, kiddo! What seems to be the issue today?" He asked merrily, Roman sighed, and collapsed into one of Patton's comfy chairs. 

Patton would usually be asleep by now, but he soon learned Prince Roman would almost always come back with battle injuries, so he made sure to stay up late when the king sent him out. 

"I fought an Ignis Dragon," he groaned as he began unbuttoning his shirt. "Oh, oh! Those are the fire breathing ones right?" Patton asked, Roman nodded in response as he finally shed his shirt. He turned around so his back faced the medic as he closely examined the burns. 

"Well I have some good news and some bad news," Patton said, "the bad news is it's a second-degree burn across your entire back. The good news is I just got a new shipment of imber leaves and the burns should be gone by morning," he smiled and clapped happily. 

Roman turned back to face him and slipped his shirt on, "thank you, padre," he said, flashing a charming smile. 

The healer loaded him up on imber leaves, disinfectants, wrap bandages, and directions. Roman thanked him once more and headed for the bathroom. 

He stripped down and got in the warm water. The prince cringed in pain as it splashed against his blistered back. After a few minutes of viciously scrubbing the dirt off, he got out and slipped on some soft pants. One of the butlers helped him apply and wrap the imber leaves to his back. Almost instantly after applying them, a cool wave of relief settled over the burns and blisters on his back. 

He got up and began peeling the bloodied wraps off his shaky hands. Hours and hours of military practice with the general for this. Roman went back to his room and collapsed on his bed. At least I have tomorrow off, the prince thought optimistically, and allowed himself a small smile. Roman cozied under the smooth covers and laid his head on the cool pillow. He closed his eyes and turned his mind off, preparing for the following day's leisure.

☆ ☆ ☆ 

Crisp autumn leaves crunched under Virgil's boot as he led Charlotte through the winding forest. It was a pleasant day, the warm sunshine mixed with the fall breeze giving off the perfect temperature. The trees were large in size and close together, aside from the small dirt trail that snaked its way through the woods. "Where are you confervo berries?" He mumbled, taking yet another turn. 

They had been walking for almost an hour and no thorn berry bushes were to be seen. "How much longer? My feet are starting to cramp," the princess whimpered, pointing to her small feet. The dark prince simply patted her head in reassurance, holding out hope himself they would eventually find them. 

Before they could find the berries, a large shadow cast itself over the forest, like night overtook the sky. The siblings froze at the unusual occurrence. A feeling as if someone watching them sent a chill up the prince's spine. Virgil quickly grabbed the ax from his belt, the tool that was once used for thorn cutting would now take on a considerably more gruesome role. Little Charlotte clung to her brother in fear, her eyes starting to overfill with tears. Everything was eerily silent as they held their breath. Panic rose in Virgil's chest, low huffy breathing echoed through the forest, a gradually increasing heartbeat pumped rapidly. The repetitive rhythm making Virgil's own heart rise in alarm. 

The petrified prince slowly lifted his head only to be met with the scaly underside of an umbra dragon. Scales as black as shadows, teeth as sharp as blades, size as large as an eighth of the forest. One of the rarest dragon breeds stared down on them with its all-white eyes. You could never tell what move it was making next, or more importantly, if it was looking directly at you. Virgil let out a staggered breath and held Charlotte closer to his chest. "Don't look up," he whispered a command to her, as he aimed the ax at the dragon's heart. 

Virgil never practiced his aim before, but there was no other choice, he had to hit. With the ax's head resting on his shoulder and a tight grip on the wooden handle, he flicked his wrist and sent the ax soaring. 

It flew and hit the dragon on its hip. A small moment of glory slowly turned into horror as the ax uselessly bounced off its scales and landed in the dirt. Mouth agape, Virgil froze in fear. The dragon let out a commanding roar that sent chills down his spine. It dived for them, or more specifically Charlotte, with bladed claws outstretched. He dived to the ground, crushing his sister beneath him in the process. She let out a small squeak and tried to wiggle away from her older brother's weight. He only pushed her back out of sight. The mighty umbra dragon swooped down, narrowly missing the pair. It perched on the top of a tree. Umbra stared down at the two shaking humans calculating it's next move. 

With a second plunge to the ground, the umbra wrapped its claws around the prince's torso and launched into the atmosphere. He screamed as terror washed over him like rapid waves. One of the last things he saw was Charlotte's big brown eyes widen as he ascended three-hundred miles an hour into the abyss of clouds and blue. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, his heart pounding out of his ribcage. The mighty Umbra flew hundreds of miles above the Earth clutching onto the prince. 

After minutes of flying in dazed shock, the dragon landed on the ground near an abandoned tower. It shoved the protesting prince through the widow and curled its body around the structure. 

Virgil took in gasps of air and scrambled to the corner of the room where he hid. His whole body was trembling in fear. Using his breathing exercises, he was able to calm down enough to think straight. I thought dragons only took princess, he thought, running his hand through his hair. 

The story goes that dragons could smell royal blood or in cases like these, they could recognize the scent of perfume on the siblings. Dragons loved collecting jewels and glimmering coins, and to them, royal blood smelled like the rarest gem of all. Of course, it also pointed out that they only took princesses because of their beauty and gentleness. They then protected their princess in a tower. This earned them respect and importance from other dragons. 

Virgil sighed once more and stood, great, I got kidnapped by a dragon and it's also telling me I look like a woman. Thanks a lot! He thought. 

The prince quickly examined the room, completely empty. Virgil knew jumping out the window was out of the question so the only other option was the door. He opened it as slowly and quietly as possible. Being met with a rotting skeleton, presumably of a prince or town's hero. This would usually disgust him, but this was not an ordinary situation. A bent sword and shield were in the grasp of the fallen soldier. He let out a small squeak as he pried the boney fingers off and picked up the unusually heavy objects. Virgil took a deep breath. Ok Umbra, let's see what you've got. 

☆ ☆ ☆

Roman woke up as the bright sun shined through his curtains. A small smile plastered on his face from the full night's rest. He got up and changed into princely attire, relieved he wasn't being dragged down by heavy armor. The smell of breakfast drifted to his nose and he quickly slid out the door. His twin brother Remus, who was younger by two minutes, and he made short-lived eye contact before both boys scrambled down the steps into the dining hall. 

Remus lived a life Roman could only dream of. Since he wasn't inheriting the throne, he didn't have the responsibility of finding a princess, in fact, he'd gotten quite good at sneaking his boyfriend in.

A breakfast of eggs, oatmeal, juice, toast, and jam was laid across the table. Their mother and father sat on opposite ends silently eating. The boys shared a knowing glance and settled at their niches. As they began eating as a knight burst into the dining hall. The crest across her chest displayed the Vigorium kingdom's symbol, a white cat and a larger, feral, black cat fighting. 

The king rose to his feet, "what's the meaning of this?" He demanded, examining the intruding warrior. "Your highness," she bowed her head respectfully, and held out a scroll, "an urgent message from the queen." He snatched it away from her and rolled it out, his eyes darted from word to word. "Dismissed," he said coldly, the knight quickly fled. 

He placed the scroll on the table, sat down, and continued to eat silently. The twins glanced back and forth from each other to their father until Roman finally broke. 

"Father, what did it say?" He asked, his father talked through his bites of oatmeal. "The princess of Vigorium has been kidnapped by an Umbra dragon, it's a plea for help," he explained. 

Roman sighed and set his utensils down. Of course, he didn't enjoy having the princess all over him, but he did love saving them. Knowing that he had done well was the only thing that kept pushing him to save them. No, he scolded himself, this is my day off, I deserve a break and damnit I'm taking one. "Vigorium's princess? Oh, I saw her at the Committee of Kings meeting last year. She's like eight or something," Remus interjected, chomping on an entire slab of bacon. 

Roman dropped his head to the table causing a small earthquake of forks and spoons. "Mother, please have the stable hand get Maximus ready," he mumbled, lifting his head. She nodded and left the room. "What're you doing?" The king asked, raising his brows. "Rescuing a princess," the prince replied. "Why? She's not old enough to wed," he said in a threatening tone. He turned and looked him in the eyes, "she's eight father. Not everything is about marriage," he stood and walked out of the room, picking up his armor as he rushed to the stables. 

Maximus was waiting for him tied to a post. He swung his leg up and settled into the familiar leather saddle. With a whip of the reins and a tightening of his scabbard, they were off once more into the woods. Roman had every tower in the forest memorized, it was just a matter of which one. 

A few hours of riding later Roman came across the last tower. The sight was horrific. Stood on the window seal was a… boy? He had a sword in hand trying to take desperate stabs at the beast. A low grumble erupted from the dragon's throat as it was about to take the boy's head off. 

Princesses weren't known to fight back, but the few that had tried ended up smeared across the forest floor. 

The dashing prince quickly dismounted Maximus and snuck closer. Umbra dragons were notorious for their imperishable skin. Everybody knew that, well, everybody except this idiot. 

He drew his sword, "hey!" He cried out, the dragon turned his attention to the intruder, he started charging the varmint.

With a swift swipe of its claw, it sent Roman flying into a great oak. He fell to the ground with a thud and groan. The other boy rolled his eyes. Roman got up and ran in a zig-zag pattern back over. The dragon looked down at him as if annoyed by the pesky thing. 

The dashing prince dived to his stomach and slid his sword into the small gap where its scales met its claw. The Umbra shrieked in pain as the prince successfully separated its talon from its foot. He stabbed the creature in the side and swung up onto it's back, pulling the talon from its side. Roman struggled to gain balance as the beast frantically shook and swatted in an attempt to fling him off. 

The poor monster staggered back and crashed into the tower. Hairline cracks spread across the stone, snaps of breaking rock grumbled and croaked. The prince submitted the final blow by sticking the talon into the back of its neck. 

The tower began crumbling to the ground as Roman looked up and met the fear-filled eyes of the boy. "Jump!" Roman urged, the other boy looked hesitantly at him before squeezing his eyes shut and jumping out of the window. 

The more courageous prince jumped off the dragons back and caught the boy mid-air before his feet hit the ground. The once towering castle slammed to the Earth with a deafening crash. Roman held the back of the prince's head tightly to his shoulder in an attempt to shield him from the small blast. 

The dust settled around them, everything suddenly seemed quiet and distant. Like a hurricane violently whipped them around before throwing them into the eye for a moment of unsettling peace. Virgil carefully unstuck his face from the other's shoulder and met him nose to nose. "Um, I've come to save you, my fair… uh, Prince?"


	3. Even

The dark prince tumbled out of his arms. "Hey, are you ok?" Roman asked, with a softness in his voice that even he had never heard before. 

Amaregena is a remarkably warlike kingdom. Every man, woman, and otherwise was taught from a young age to show no weakness. Any sign of vulnerability was quickly snuffed out and replaced with a guarded heart and mind.

The prince recalled learning these lessons from the general. Young Roman, around the age of six, swung hopelessly with his blade as General Logan Berry effortlessly deflected every stroke. Breathless and exhausted, the tiny prince dropped his sword to the dirt as his mentor placed his blade to Roman's shoulder. “Get your sword boy,” Logan commanded, staring into his eyes like a lion prowling its next meal. He took the sword from the little prince’s shoulder and placed it on his own.

Logan was a tall man, young at the time having just turned twenty. Black glasses framed his long face and coated his dark brown eyes. Everything about him was proper and calculated, from his slicked-back hair to his shined metal armor, every detail was perfected. His cold demeanor and almost emotionless expressions made him the perfect fit to teach the little prince. 

The boy sniffled in response and held out his palm he had managed to cut across. His teacher sighed and looked down at his tear-streaked face. “You have much to learn, your majesty,” he grabbed the boy’s wrist and held it in front of Roman's face as the fresh blood dribbled down his forearm. “This is nothing. There's no point in crying over something you can't fix. Crying doesn’t help anything, it just makes you weak and unable to control your emotions. That goes for any time you feel like crying. Now clean your cut, pick up your sword, and get back to work.” He spoke harshly and threw Roman's arm to his side. 

The boy watched as his mentor walked away from him, he didn’t completely understand the ways of his people yet, but he would soon realize the part he must play, and it was far from a happily ever after. 

“Yeah, um, I think so…” the boy replied in a soft voice, snapping Roman out of his trance. His eyes rested on the boy who was standing and dusting himself off. 

The first thing he noticed was the obvious height difference. The other prince stood at 5’3 with the help of boots which quite surprised Roman. He wore a thin tunic under his buttoned-up royal attire in an attempt to hide his skronky feminine figure. His hair was a raven black that swept over one of his hazel eyes. The dark prince had a thin face with freckles sprinkled over every inch of his skin. A poor attempt to hide them was executed by smearing some kind of dark mud under his eyes, although it didn't make up for the rest of his body and face. All the dark clothing and features were only further complemented by his ghostly pale complexion.

Roman attempted his usual charming smile but the circumstances felt much too awkward. “I had everything under control,” the darker mumbled, as he tilted his head up to meet his eyes. Roman knitted his eyebrows and looked down on the boy, “you were standing on a ledge poking a dragon with unpierceable skin with a sword and it was about to burn you to a crisp. I don't know about you but it sounds like I saved your butt. You're welcome," he mouthed off, rolling his eyes and popping his hip. The other shot him a glare, "I can handle myself, Princey,” he scoffed. Roman laughed, “oh yeah I’m sure you can Short Stack. Now get on the horse and I’ll escort you home Princess,” he smiled, putting one hand on his saddle and holding the other out for the boy. 

He snorted, “I don’t need an escort and I’m not a princess,” he gently slapped the taller boy’s hand away, “and I’m definitely not coming with you,” he spat, giving a small stamp with his left foot like an angry five-year-old. 

Roman's face dropped as he raised his eyebrows. Of course, many princesses had rejected his generous offer but this was different. The dark prince was insulting him for no good reason and Roman would not stand for it. He walked closer to the boy and scooped him up with one arm behind his knees and the other on his back.

“Hey!” he protested, as he swung his legs trying to escape Roman's grasp. "Relax Princess," he responded flatly. The taller boy sat the prince side-saddle on Maximus and mounted behind him. He clasped the reins on either side of the prince’s small frame so there was no chance of him plummeting to the harsh ground below. With a whip of the reins, Maximus bolted down the musty path towards the distance kingdom of Vigorium.

☆ ☆ ☆

Virgil's hair flew behind him as the wind stung his face. He was never one for horse riding or anything that required stepping outside really. In a hurry, he quickly threw his other leg around to keep himself steadied. Now properly straddling the saddle, the unfamiliar gallop of the stallion bounced him awkwardly. The other prince laughed joyously, at what Virgil thought was his discomfort. “What kind of prince doesn’t know how to ride a horse?!” He shouted over the white noise of clumping hooves and rushing wind.

“This one I guess!” Virgil responded as he tightened his grip on Maximus’s white mane. The raven-haired boy watched the forest rushing by him. 

Tall trees occupied the thicket, each and every one of their souls bound to the woodland. Once in a while, you could spot the spirit of a nymph hiding behind her sapling and observing the village people traveling through the forest. The air there was fresh and happily filled his lungs, unlike the thick, warm air within the castle walls. 

“What's your name, Princess?!” The annoying prince asked, smiling like a mischievous pup. “Virgil,” he grumbled back, “and I suppose yours is Sir-Sing-A-Lot the third?” He fired at him, mocking his accented voice. The other prince gasped, “rude! I’m Prince Roman King of Amaregena, Emo Nightmare,” Roman shot back. 

Virgil watched in horror as Roman swayed Maximus to run right over a mound of dirt causing the dark prince to go airborne before slamming back down sending a jolt of pain up his spine. Virgil muttered under his breath for a lightning strike to come forth and smite his companion as the other laughed hysterically. 

A sudden halt almost threw both of them off as an elderly woman seemed to appear in front of them. The friendlier of the two cleared his throat and projected a deeper, heroic voice making the other roll his eyes, “ma’am are you in peril?” Roman asked, making a slow circle around the woman. She shook her head and her form almost seemed to flicker. “Roman,” Virgil spoke, his voice laced with fear. “Shut it," the hero responded in a whisper, "I'm trying to help this lady." The woman spoke in a sickly voice like an abandoned carriage's wheel creaking its way to demolishment, "please!" She shrieked, "my grandson fell in the lake! He cannot swim!" 

Virgil watched as Roman foolishly jumped off and started towards the nearby lake. The dark prince grew up with fairy tales and magic, although he knew some were for children such as true love's kiss, most were brought to life from reality. The women followed the courageous prince surprisingly quickly, but Virgil knew better. 

Nøkken were water spirits of the most malicious nature. Their goal was to lure their victims into the water and drown them, leaving the poor souls to rot at the bottom of the river with the rest of the prey. He remembered reading about them in his creature class with his tutor Joan. 

They had always made up jokes so it was easier for Virgil to remember, and it worked well too. "Nøkk, Nøkk," Joan would say, "who's there?" Virgil would respond excitedly, with a smile plastered on his face. Their face would turn deadly serious, they stared blankly at the air, "getting drowned at the bottom of the ocean by a deadly water spirit." Virgil would laugh uncontrollably, he had always known he developed his twisted sense of humor from Joan. 

Virgil jumped off Maximus and quietly slipped his way down the deer path they had traveled down. Peering from behind an oak, Princey's actions were of the stupidest Virgil had ever seen. Roman was leaned over the edge looking for the woman's grandson. The spirit slowly came up behind him as Virgil jumped out of his hiding place. "Roman!" He shouted, the spirit and the prince both whipped their heads around. The spirit glaring, and the prince with a look of confusion. The old woman jumped onto his back changing form to a devilish looking sea creature. The two tumbled into the water as Roman lashed to free himself. 

Virgil panicked, should he jump in after him? No, she'd just drown him too. His eyes darted around urgently and they landed on the prince's fallen, polished blade. He took in a deep breath and let his body take control. Deep-rooted instincts quickly overpowered his head of worry as he dived for the sword. As soon as he felt the leather grip he took in a gulp of air and dived in after them. 

Pushing water behind him and pumping his legs towards the bottomless lake, he scanned for any sign of struggle, hoping he wasn't too late. 

A small flash caught his eye a few feet below him. He swam further down, his ears about to pop and his joints aching, but he couldn't stop when he was that close. The sight was horrific. 

A hairless creature with milky white eyes and distorted body. Its muscles were bulged and uneven, like someone stuck random lumps of clay to the top half of a statue and it morphed to life. The bottom half wasn't much better. An aluminous, transparent tail occupied its other half. Razor tipped fins sliced through the tides below. Long nimble fingers held Roman's unconscious face in place as he awaited his inevitable fate. 

Virgil didn't know what to do. His adrenaline was nearly gone and so was his oxygen, but the sleeping prince couldn't hold out for Virgil to come back down with more air and a better plan. The dark prince did have one advantage. The Nøkk didn't know he was there. 

He swung the sword with both hands in an attempt to slice her head off but he had briefly forgotten that he was in fact underwater. The Nøkk snapped her head to him and let out a shrill shriek. There went that advantage. It sped towards him, hands outstretched and heinous teeth on display. The dark prince was grabbed by the neck and shoved further under the dark waves. His vision went red and his body tensed. Virgil hadn’t planned for this. His mind wandered to the path of simply leaving Roman behind, escaping to solid ground, and counting each step he walked away. 

No, he couldn't, he couldn't live with the guilt. Despite being on his last nerve with the prince his morality would have no mercy, whipping his mind with guilt and anxiety for the rest of his miserable existence. His head spun frantically looking for anything that could help him until he looked to his hands. Of course! Nails. Shakily his hands raised and clawed at the creature's eyes. It screamed, letting go of his neck and held it’s own eyes in place. 

Virgil never swam so hard. Not even the time Tarrence threw him in the shark-infested waters. He saw the prince floating above him, lifelessly drifting with the tide. Virgil grabbed his wrist and pulled his body weight until he broke water. Air filled his lungs with a wheeze and a cough. Water spilled from his mouth and he wanted to drop limp. Barely holding the dashing prince above water he pulled them on the rocky shore. 

Gasping for his breath Virgil still had the prince to worry about. Dragging himself over and turning the prince face up he bit his lip at his pale face. “Come on, idiot,” he mumbled, pressing down on his chest. With a few minutes of chest compressions, Roman's eyes flicked open as he coughed up water and blood. A sigh of relief escaped Virgil's lips as he fell back on the smooth rocks, “thank God,” he spoke breathlessly. 

Roman collapsed back and turned his head to Virgil, “what just happened?” He asked, meeting his eyes. A small smirk crept across his face, “isn't it obvious? I saved you, idiot,” Virgil said mockingly. “Well,” Roman replied, “I guess we’re even.”


	4. One Last Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil and Roman get back to Virgil's castle, where an unpleasant surprise awaits them...

Roman and Virgil laid silently on the shore, letting the warm sun and cool breeze dry them off. The shock of almost drowning slowly wore off. It was replaced with relief and a strange stillness in the thicket. The dashing prince let out a quiet sigh. 

He was supposed to be the one saving, not the other way around. Let alone by an annoying emo boy who could barely lift a sword. How is he supposed to do the one thing he's meant to if he can't even save himself from a ghastly sea creature? Doubt settled in his mind. Could he really save this many princesses without getting killed? Will his luck run out? His ego quickly took over. Hell no, just because one measly prince had to save him doesn't make him weak. He'll never run out of luck because it's not luck, it's skill. Roman smiled softly at himself, he's not going to let one little hiccup ruin his mood. 

"Hey, Princey," Virgil smacked him in the gut, making him immediately sit up with a small gasp. "Let's go," he said flatly, standing and walking down the deer path out of sight. Roman glared at him and huffed. Standing and stretching, he made his way down the path to a hilarious sight. With one leg on the saddle and one firmly on the ground, the dark prince was struggling to pull himself onto Maximus, who looked more than displeased with the circumstances. 

Roman laughed and Virgil's face reddened. "Shut it," Virgil snapped, "yeah, yeah" Roman replied, rolling his eyes. He walked over and grabbed his waist, pushing him up on the saddle. "Next time," he said, resting his foot in the stirrup and mounting his horse, "use the foothold," he snickered. Virgil grunted in response, folding his arms across his chest. 

The journey was mostly silent, with Roman occasionally attempting a conversation, and Virgil swiftly shutting him down. "You know, Maximus-" he started, "stop," Virgil said, almost as if he was confused by his ignorance. "What's your problem Nightmare?" The prince replied, shooting a glare at the back of his head, "you're just annoying, and one of those narcissistic pretty boys. So let's stop trying to make conversation and shut up," the dark prince spoke, gripping the horse's mane tighter and preparing for another slam down on the saddle. 

Roman gasped, offended by his words, and replied, "I am pretty aren't I?" He smirked and tossed his hair out of his face, loving how his confidence annoyed the boy. "You are the single most frustrating, idiotic person I've ever met," Virgil huffed, his shoulders folded over himself in a hunch, "why thank you, Sunshine, and you are a moody, emo mess," he beamed. 

It was all a game to Roman, pushing the dark prince's buttons and watching him get all frustrated was fun. It was even more fun when the emo talked back to him. Despite the fun he had making fun of him, Roman certainly disliked the boy. He just seemed like the type of person who could walk into a room and ruin everyone's mood by just standing there. 

Roman spotted the castle on the horizon. A small village surrounded it, golden light bounced off the rooftops and gleamed on the nearby stream. He couldn't believe it, the sun was already setting. They rode into town, children squealed and pointed as they passed and Roman flashed them his dazzling smile. The older girls giggled and whispered to their friends and the little boys were in awe of the heroic figure. 

"They act as if they've never seen a prince before," Roman said between the closed teeth of his smile, "because they haven't genius," the darker replied with his shamelessly snarky tone. "What kind of prince has never met his people?" Roman turned his attention to the road ahead and slowed Maximus to a trot, "this one," he responded, yet again. The dashing prince took a moment to think. He simply couldn't fathom a prince never making an appearance to his people. 

His father had always told him, "keep in your people's favor. They must know your heart and soul. Whether it's truly yours is up to you, but you must make them trust you," he recalled him saying. That's exactly why every Friday morning Roman went out on Maximus and showed off for his people, no matter how reluctant he was. The attention, of course, was wonderful, however, it meant nothing. All he did was prance around smiling, then back to the castle it is. Perhaps he wouldn't have felt so rebellious towards it if his parents weren't forcing him to go. 

Two guards halted them at the gates, "what's your business in the castle?" One demanded, "he's 'escorting' me home," the dark one said, lifting his head to reveal his familiar face. “Your highness!” The other squeaked, “sincerest apologies. The queen has been expecting you,” they then met eyes with Roman and bowed their head, “her majesty has freed a stable for your stead,” the guard explained. Roman gave a nod in response, “thank you.” The first guard opened the gate and Maximus ambled in, Virgil gave him the directions to the barn and they handed him off to the stable worker, Talyn. “Woah, you have a garden?” Roman asked, as they walked past the gated landscaping. 

The Amaregena castle was nowhere near as artistic as Vigorium’s. Instead of being filled with statues and gardens, their castle was fully armed and intended to intimidate whoever may stumble in the gates. In place of a garden, they instead had a personal training arena for the royal guards and princes’. 

“No, it’s a torture chamber made to look nice so I can lure in more victims to sacrifice,” the raven-haired boy rolled his eyes, remembering the few pleasant times he had playing with his sister in those very gardens. Roman's eyes expanded before shooting a quick pout at the other, “that was sarcasm wasn’t it?” He asked huffily. Virgil snickered, “perhaps.” 

The duo entered the castle, the queen was perched on her throne like a falcon scanning for mice. She had almost no change in expression upon seeing her only son intact. “Virgil dear, your safe, thank God. I had no doubts King Louie’s son would follow through with my plea,” she spoke calmly, sipping a cup of herb tea. “You pleaded for him to rescue me?” Virgil replied in a hurt tone, Roman rolled his eyes at the boy's butthurt attitude. “No," Roman spoke sternly, "she pleaded for me to rescue Princess Charlotte, which was an obvious lie,” he continued coldly towards the queen, who seemed to not have a care in the world. 

"I will admit to using Charlotte, however, I knew you wouldn't do it otherwise. It was simply a tactic to retrieve my son, and it worked," she pointed out. Roman ground his teeth together. If there's one thing he hated its liars, although, technically he was lying about many things, but that was beside the point! Even though he probably wouldn't have saved the prince if he had known it was Virgil and not an eight-year-old little girl, she still shouldn't have lied about it! 

"However," she continued, "I know my actions may come off as malevolent, but I assure you I have good intentions. In fact," her eyes gleamed mischievously, "I'm so very thankful for this dashing young man here," she gestured to Roman. A pit grew in his stomach, he didn't understand what was happening but he knew it wasn't as good as the queen made it out to be. "In a symbol of my good faith, I give my eldest child, and only son, to the Amaregena kingdom as Prince Roman's future husband."

☆ ☆ ☆

Virgil could have screamed. There was no way in hell he was marrying that infuriating ball of narcissistic golden boy! “Uh, excuse me? No! I’m sorry mother but I’m not marrying him. He’s an idiot!” Virgil fought, the other gasped, “it’s not like I want to marry you either Storm Cloud!” He declared, crossing his arms across his chest and side-eyeing him. 

“Boys, boys,” the queen interjected, “you’re acting like children, you don't get to decide. The decision has already been made for you. Now, you can either return to Amaregena’s castle, get married by months end, make your parents proud,” she glanced to Roman, “create a strong alliance, and live happy, fulfilling lives, or be exiled from my kingdom and be left astray,” she met her son’s eyes. 

Virgil's heart dropped. No, this can't be happening, his own mother blackmailing him into an arranged marriage. Trust melted away, was he nothing more then that orphan boy she’d found all those years ago? Among a hodge-podge of abandoned, hopeless kids, she had chosen him. And for what? This? So she could give him away to a stranger for an alliance? Virgil was hurt, yet he still held out hope his mother had a plan to get him back. Maybe he was just going to be a mole before an attack. Or perhaps a knight would take him back through the dead of night. He still held out hope, despite the sinking feeling, that everything was going to be alright. 

The queen was good at her job, yes, but she would do whatever it took for her kingdom to stay afloat, even if it means giving up her son to a neighboring kingdom. Amaregena was much bigger than Vigorium, and because of their warlike people, no one dared to challenge them. As soon as Charlotte ran up to her in tears, explaining how Virgil was taken she knew what she must do. If Virgil and Roman got married they would become kings of both kingdoms, merging the empires and assuring Vigorium would not fade into history’s endless pages. But this was at the cost of trust. 

Virgil took in a stuttered breath, “fine, I’ll marry him,” he surrendered. Roman jumped in to protest, “I full-heartedly disagree-”, he started, before receiving a vicious glare from Virgil and going quiet. “Good,” the queen smiled, “it’s getting late, you may stay in Virgil's room for the night and depart first thing tomorrow morning,” she stood and made her way over to the pair. Placing a hand on either of their shoulders and giving a slight squeeze before disappearing into the inner workings of the castle. 

“We’re not sharing a bed,” Virgil said flatly, “oh thank God,” Roman started, “wait, where am I sleeping?” He asked, Virgil's small laughter echoed through the halls as the boy slipped up the stairs, Roman bounding after him. 

They walked into Virgil's room, and he courteously threw a pillow and quilt on the floor. Roman looked at the boy with disgust, “your kidding,” he challenged. Virgil snickered and began to shake his head, “never been more serious Princess,” he mocked. Roman huffed, “I don't like you,” the prince complained, “glad we’re on the same page,” the other replied. 

Virgil kicked off his boots as the dashing prince began shedding his amor. They laid in their respective beds and blew out the candles. Soft night breeze circulated through the room, and the rising moon glowed softly over the land, yet sleep wasn’t finding Virgil. He rolled back and forth, changing positions and taking the quilt on and off, but nothing was helping. 

The dark prince eventually gave up and slumped out to the balcony, stepping over the snoring prince. It was colder than the previous night, sending a shiver up his spine. The stars shone with a miraculous beauty. They lived light-years away but somehow managed to make themselves visible to the human eye, just so humans' could witness their elegance. 

Virgil ran his thumb over the grainy stone railing, if he could just see more. He gripped the flute of a nearby column and raised to the balls of his feet. Perhaps… one last look before allowing his anxiety to consume him. Perhaps one last look before leaving his home behind, venturing into the terrifying world his mother always warned him about, but have always longed to explore. Perhaps one last look before he was shipped off with an irritating stranger to an unknown kingdom. 

Virgil tightened his grip and stepped onto the railing. He panicked for a moment before firmly planting his feet and side hugging the pillar beside him. Yet again rising to the balls of his feet, he peered over the tall treetops at the sky laid in front of him. 

It was no ordinary night, a dark blue blanket draped over most of the sky. Dark purples and hints of green leaped across the atmosphere, stars sprinkled and swirled into every crevice. The Gods and fallen heroes resided in the sky in their new form of constellations, watching over the slumbering world and protecting their people. 

Virgil sighed and rested his head against the column. The stars twinkled and danced in the sky, a show he felt was meant for him alone. Under the bright sky laid the soft moon-lit village. Most were asleep, children tucked in their beds surrounded by the warmth of their quilt. Some were still up, sat around a fire drinking wine and laughing till dawn, or maybe they were wandering the streets lost from a home they never knew. 

"What're you doing?" A sudden voice asked, Virgil, yelped and felt his foot slip out from under him. A strong grasp grabbed him by the arm and yanked him back up, the grip was the only thing keeping him from a deadly 50-foot drop. Virgil's heart dropped to his stomach and his legs felt like jelly. It didn't help the first thing he saw was Roman's smirk. 

"So, that's one point for me right?" He asked smugly, "not if you're the one that put me in peril in the first place!" Virgil exclaimed back at him, knees shaking. The other simply laughed, "I caught you didn't I Princess?" Virgil scoffed in response, "why're you up?" Roman pondered for a moment before strolling over and leaning against the guardrail with his arms folded neatly on top, and eyes staring out. "You weren't exactly quiet," he admitted, Virgil sighed and his eyes fell to the ground, "it's late, we should get some sleep," he spoke, glancing up. The dashing prince turned and seemingly studied Virgil's face before giving a nod and heading back inside. 

The two eventually fell into a deep slumber. Roman hugged his single pillow and was tightly wrapped in his thick quilt, and Virgil was hidden from view under the covers. They slept soundly despite knowing what was to come. One last peaceful night before facing the unavoidable burdens of tomorrow, and more importantly, of the rest of their lives.


	5. After the Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I posted this at 11:28 PM so technically I'm still on schedule for every Saturday! Woohoo!

Roman was in shock. When he first heard about the queen's engagement plan he thought she was insane. A prince has never married another prince, it was unheard of! On top of that, the gloomy boy was at the bottom of his "Want to Marry" list, in fact, he wasn't even on it. Roman was positive Virgil was as appalled by the idea as himself, but then the stupid boy accepted her deal! Of course, he didn't blame Virgil, who would pass up the chance to marry the one and only Prince Roman? Alas, he was shut up before he could interject. 

It was cold when he woke, dark clouds drifted across the gray sky, and the harsh wind blew through the open balcony. He shivered under his single quilt and brought it up to his chin. Truthfully, he's slept in worse conditions, stone floors of abandoned castles, unstable tents made of branches and leaves, but come on he's a prince! He's supposed to be spoiled in riches and luxuries. 

Roman stood and stretched his sore muscles. He looked to the bed and saw Virgil sleeping peacefully cuddled under the covers. "Virgil," he said, the dark prince remained in his death-like sleep. Roman groaned and stripped the blankets from him. Virgil stirred and grumbled before sitting up, "jerk," he said while stretching to the sky. "Oh how you've hurt me," Roman responded dramatically, placing a hand over his heart. Virgil rolled his eyes and got up. 

The dark prince lent him some clothes from when his mother was positive he was going to grow more. They both turned away from each other and changed into fresh outfits. Roman wore a tight fitted, long-sleeved, shirt. Off white pants covered his lower half with a belt and scabbard to hold his sword. Dark brown, slightly small boots covered his feet. Last but not least, his own final touch of knee and shoulder plates. Both boys turned to see the other. Virgil wore a similar style. A simple cream peasant tunic with a black cloak for warmth. His tunic tucked into dark brown pants and boots for his feet. Instead of a scabbard, a satchel was slung over his left shoulder. "Come on," the short prince beckoned, swinging the door open and going down the endless flights of stairs. Roman followed him down and was met with the queen holding the princess in her lap. 

"Virgil!" The little girl ran up to the dark prince and jumped into his arms. The prince, surprisingly, could hold her just fine, and easily wrapped his arms around her tiny frame. Roman's eyes drifted from the siblings and he saw the queen giving him a cold stare. He started shuffling his feet, the way she was looking at him made his stomach turn. She held out her index finger and motioned for him to come closer. The dashing prince strutted across the room to her. Rule number one, if you feel nervous or uncomfortable it's even more important to flaunt your confidence. 

"Can I assist you, your highness?" Roman asked politely, smiling and puffing his chest out. "Perhaps," the woman purred, "I know you don't want to court my son, and you should know I don't care. If you call off the engagement there will be consequences beyond your wildest nightmares. So if you really want to assist me, Prince Roman, marry my son," she hissed, with a sickly sweet smile. “I, um,” Roman stuttered, he didn’t exactly know how to respond to that. He bowed his head slightly, “yes, your highness,” he replied softly, “yes your highness what?” she glared. He rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably and met her eyes, “I will marry the prince your highness,” Roman gave in. The queen smiled and kissed his forehead, “welcome to the family, Prince Roman.”

☆ ☆ ☆

“No!” Charlotte cried, “you’re not leaving!” Virgil kneeled down on his knees holding his little sister’s hands. “I’m sorry, trust me, I don’t want me to leave either,” he sighed. Explaining what was happening to Charlotte was a tormenting task. "How about this," he began, "I'll keep a diary, and when I return, which I will, I'll give it to you to read. Then you'll know everything that happened while I was gone," he smiled softly at her. Truthfully, he did not know if he would return, but he found comfort in the comfort it gave Charlotte. Virgil never liked children. Even when he was a kid himself he much rather have played with the teenagers. Kids were loud panic attack machines, and he didn't want anything to do with them. However, Charlotte was the exception. She was his sister, she wasn't a kid, she was his kid. Which only made it harder to say goodbye. 

The girl nodded and quickly ran off to her room before returning with a journal. It was black and leather-bound, the cover was engraved with various twisting patterns, and in the center, a glowing red ruby. "Where did you get this?" Virgil asked, he'd never seen that journal before and it certainly didn't look like something she would pick out herself. The princess shrugged, "I found it on my bookshelf,” she said, “huh,” he replied, “thank you,” he hugged her tight. She hugged him tight, her brown braids fell around his shoulders. 

“Princesses,” Roman walked behind him, “time to go,” he beckoned. The dark prince stood and gave one last goodbye to Charlotte. He ignored the queen in the corner and confidently walked out, the dashing prince following close behind. The pair mounted Maximus who was once again full of energy. The dark clouds above hissed and rolled over the sky. Thick droplets drizzled down across the land and the duo. Virgil held his head to the sky, closing his eyes and allowing the droplets to dampen his face, meanwhile, Roman was complaining about his hair being a mess. 

The dark prince looked over and stifled a laugh, Roman’s hair was sticking up in every direction as well as his visible cowlick on the back of his head. “Don’t even start Storm Cloud,” he pouted. Virgil rolled his eyes, but he wasn't the only storm cloud out that day. The drizzle quickly morphed into a downpour, the harsh wind shifted the rain sideways and thunder rolled like drums. Virgil's sight was blurred with water, his clothes and hair were soaked beyond giving him warmth. He was just glad he wasn't the one leading Maximus. He felt Roman's arms tight on his sides and his chest right against his back. He seemed just as soggy as Virgil, maybe even worse. 

Virgil had lived through many days like those. Dark and stormy nights filled with howls and whispers of the breeze. Unlike some kids, the dark prince was never afraid of thunderstorms. In fact, he quite enjoyed the calmer ones. Running outside and watching strikes of lighting while fat raindrops spattered across his skin were some of his favorite memories as a kid. This, however, was not that kind of storm. It felt like they were pushing against a hurricane, Maximus struggled to plant his hooves in the muddy soil. 

"We need to stop!" Virgil shouted over the surrounding chaos, "no! The sooner we get to the castle the better! We can push through this!" Roman yelled back. "It's just going to get worse idiot!" Virgil replied. The other ignored Virgil and kept going despite Virgil's complaints. After riding a few more miles down the road, a flash of light appeared, momentarily blinding them as a loud snap echoed across the land. The two yelped as a ginormous oak slammed down in front of them. 

Maximus, already stressed and exhausted, reared up, knocking the two princes off his back onto the muddy ground. The sludge caked the duo completely. Maximus bolted, running off the trail and into the unknown forest. 

Virgil angrily splashed the dashing prince, "if you would've stopped when I told you to, we wouldn't be in this mess!" He screamed at him, Roman gasped as the cold mud hit his face. "Don't you dare blame this on me! You're the one that wanted to sit out in the cold rain and just wait around! For what?! Mother nature to just go: 'Yeah, sure, they look like they need some help', and clear the storm?!" He scraped the mud off his face and threw it back at Virgil. The two continued with their yelling and hurling of slimy snowballs until they were beyond recognition. 

"Stop!" Roman relinquished, after getting hit "accidentally" by a rock, "my perfectly peerless pearls!" He rubbed his thumb on his two front teeth where the rock hit, "you're lucky I was able to make use of my alliteration or else I would be a lot angrier right now," he glared at Virgil. The dark prince snickered, he knew that rock would come in handy. He stood and wiped the mud from around his eyes and mouth, Roman doing the same. 

Virgil's eyes darted around the scene. The tree was huge, so huge that he couldn't see the end of either side. He crossed out the plan to go around it. The tree itself was slippery from the rain, and considering the amount of randomly placed stones surrounding the trail if one of them slipped and hit their head, it was game over. He tapped his foot and fidgeted with his hands, there had to be a way out of it. 

"I got it," he proclaimed, dropping to his knees. "Woah! Is now really the time?" Roman asked nervously, Virgil gagged, and rolled his eyes, "not that moron, help me dig." He began scooping up the soupy mud at the base of the tree and tossing it aside. Roman kneeled down and started helping, "as much as I love digging through mud, why're we doing this?" The dashing prince asked. 

Virgil remembered back to his tutor. He was around nine at the time, and Joan was taking him through his logic and reasoning lessons. "You can't go around it, you can't go over it, you can't go through it, you have to go under it!" They had sung together. Joan was one of the most solid things Virgil had in his life. Sure his mother would go visit other kingdoms, sure the guards thought he was annoying, but Joan was there every day for his lessons without fail. 

"The path we're on is soil, which obviously turns to mud and is a lot easier to move then if it had grassroots. If we dig deep enough we can make a tunnel and slip under," Virgil explained, "and what if it sinks down while we're trying to slip out?" Roman turned his head to the dark prince as he paused, "we pray," he responded, continuing to dig the mud out. Roman nodded and helped. 

After an hour of digging, they were about halfway done when Virgil's arms basically went numb. "I-I don't think I can do this," he said breathlessly, Roman looked at him like he was crazy, "it's only been an hour." Virgil leaned against the side of the tunnel and felt his biceps quivering and tensing up. Roman rolled his eyes, "whatever," he stopped and leaned against the other side. The dark prince wasn't the fittest person, certainly not as physically active as Roman. He looked down, curling up, and clenching his arms. He's the one that came up with the idea, he should've been able to do it too. Virgil was always self-conscious about how he looked. Too skinny, too feminine, too weak, too short. Although it wasn't all his fault, he was too busy studying and taking lessons to do any training, not that his mother would approve. 

Roman studied his face, sensing his uneasiness, and started digging again. "You can relax, I'll do the rest," Roman said nonchalantly, Virgil tilted his head. "No, I can help just give me a minute," he insisted, taking a few more breaths. Virgil sat up and started digging again only to be pushed back down by Roman, "you need rest, your arms are literally shaking. I can finish it, but you have to carry me to the castle," he snickered. Virgil rolled his eyes but hid a soft smile, "pfft, whatever," he responded. The dark prince watched as Roman continued clawing at the muck. 

His mind wandered to Amaregena, one of the most warlike kingdoms in known land. At first glance, it's hard to believe Roman was their prince. Especially when he dug through the mud, he looked more like a big dumb golden retriever puppy than a prince of war. Still, it was a brutal environment that he was brutally unprepared for. 

"Hey, Princess," Roman said, snapping him out of his daydreams. Virgil looked up and saw Roman had finished tunneling them out. The weather turned bright, the breeze wafted the dark clouds to the West and the sun was out to play. However, most notable, was the radiant rainbow stretching across the sky. After all, after every storm, comes a rainbow. 

The princes' climbed out, covered in mud and soaked in rainwater. Their hair was glued in various directions and thankful looks across their faces. "So you're going to carry me right?" Roman giggled, "how about I drag you by the foot?" Virgil responded sweetly, Roman gasped and huffed before they started back down the trail. 

Virgil was miserable, the mud was drying to his skin and his socks we're soiled. "We're going to look back at this and laugh," Roman optimized, "and you're going to look back to see the back of my hand," the dark prince mumbled, "wanna meet the back of my sword?" He replied. Virgil rolled his eyes and continued walking. 

Hours of bitterly trudging through the heat later, the castle gates appeared before them. Roman threw his head back with a sigh of relief as they dragged themselves to the guards. "Thank God, we've been walking for hours," Virgil complained. He was quickly met with the tip of a sword to his throat and a growl from one of the guards. "What do you think you're doing?" One of them barked, "I-I, uh," Virgil stuttered. "Ladies, ladies, relax. It's me," Roman said, flashing them a smile and a wink. The guards looked at each other then back at the boys, "we no not who you are," guard two snarled, "and we will not fall prisoner to your 'charm' if you could even call it that. Now move along or your head will part ways from your body," they both glared. Roman's jaw-dropped, Virgil would've laughed if he didn't have a sword to his throat, the look on his face was impeccable. 

"I'm Prince Roman!" He protested, the women snickered and looked him up and down. "Sure you are bud, move along before the actual prince comes back from his princess pageant," they laughed. Roman glared at them. Virgil suspected a dark blush under the mud globs which just made it even more enjoyable. "I would never!" He objected, turning and walking away, Virgil rolled his eyes and followed, leaving the two guards to laugh. 

"I can't believe that! When I get back in they're so fired!" He fumed, pacing back and forth with both hands on the back of his head. "Woah, relax Princey. You're covered in mud, they probably couldn't recognize you. We'll find another way in," he promised, Roman huffed and sat on a nearby stone, Virgil could hear the dried mud crunch at the bend of his knees. "Any windows?" Virgil joked, Roman rested his chin on his fist and smirked.

Next thing Virgil knew he was being thrown through a window. "Just grab the window seal!" Roman called up at him, Virgil was standing on his shoulders reaching up for the window. "You're going to drop me!" Virgil yelled back, "am not!" The other responded. He groaned and reached up, grabbing the seal with his nose pressed against the wall. Roman carefully moved Virgil's feet from his shoulders to his palms and straightened his arms up quickly, almost sending Virgil toppling backward. "Asshole!" The dark Prince shouted down, he heard a laugh in response. Virgil rolled his eyes and opened the window climbing inside. "I have a rope in my top left drawer!" Roman hollered. Virgil looked around his room. 

Elegant gold, white, and red colors decorated the room. It was a similar layout to his own room except for two key differences. The first difference was instead of using small candles for lighting, there was a well-sized golden chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The second difference was a giant mirror leaning against the wall. It has a quaint white frame with gold leaves painted over it. Virgil hurried over to his drawers and opened the top left, low and behold there was a sturdy rope with a grappling hook tied to the end. He hooked the clasp to the window seal and threw down the rope. 

"Why do you have a grappling hook in your bedroom?" Virgil questioned, as he watched Roman start to climb. "How else am I supposed to escape my parents?" The dashing prince replied, pulling himself into the room and slinging the hook over his shoulder. "Well, now that we're in we should probably-" Roman quickly got cut off by the door opening and a servant appeared. His jaw dropped at the sight of two peasant looking boys standing in the prince's room holding a grappling hook. He immediately ran out calling for guards. "Oh my stars," Roman sighed, "we're screwed."


	6. The Arrangement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...I'm sorry. I can make a bunch of excuses like how school started up or major writer's block or that I had an existential crisis over not having a character arch properly planned out. But I'm not going to do that. The bottom line is that I was super lazy, I did have the time and the energy I just didn't want to and I apologize for that. I'm not going to say it will never happen again because I don't know that, but I will put in more effort to get chapters done, and I haven't given up on this because I love this story. So yeah, enjoy :)

The dashing prince was in a less than ideal situation. Guards surrounded them on all sides with sharpened spears held in ready. The boys put their hands up and sighed. Roman was clearly the prince! Even covered in mud he should be recognized by his charm alone! "Hey! You dare point a spear at your prince?" He asked, Virgil rolled his eyes and tore some mud from the prince's face. "Ow!" He screeched, "how dare you!" Virgil laughed, and one of the guards sighed, "stand down," he demanded. The other guards hesitantly placed their spears down as the head knight took off his helmet. "Logan!" The dashing prince exclaimed, letting out a sigh of relief. 

Logan had gained various scars throughout the years, but other than that he looked nearly identical to his 20-year-old self. "What're you doing?" Logan sighed, "and who's this? Nevermind I don't want to know," he lifted his glasses and massaged the bridge of his nose. He quickly dismissed the other knights as they marched out of the room single file. The dashing prince began dramatically explaining what had happened. From the thrilling escape of the Umbra dragon to the hopelessly digging through the mud after being shunned by the mighty storm. "Yet, after I escorted him home, quite nobly I might add, his mother blackmailed me-" Roman started, "us," the dark prince coughed, "blackmailed US so I would take him here," he continued, purposely leaving out the whole arranged marriage thing. 

"I see," Logan said, skeptically looking over Virgil before looking back to Roman. "Your parents have been waiting for your arrival, however, I doubt they'll be pleased with your current appearance," he said matter-of-factly, "I got this," Virgil smirked, tearing off another strip of mud from his skin. The dashing prince yelped once more and rubbed his irritated skin, the audacity of that boy about pushed him over the edge. The duo ended up getting taken back around the castle with two buckets of cold water, a sponge, and another set of clothes. Neither hesitated to dump the frozen water on the other before scrubbing clean and changing. Virgil shook his hair out like a dog while Roman slicked his mane back like a proper prince. 

Roman started striding towards the entrance of the castle as the other scrambled after him. He knew the backside of the castle well. All those nights he used the rope to climb his way down and grapple his way up. He cracked a smile at the thought. It was scary and thrilling at first. It was the first time he had stood up to his parent's authority and went out and did something. He wasn't concentrated on impressing anyone, fighting for his life, hiding his emotions under a blank stare. He was free to be himself. It was thrilling yet terrifying, because of an incident that happened long ago the prince could not stand the dark, and the fear of getting caught in his secret sanctuary, well… the punishments were almost enough to stop him. 

They turned the corner and gave a nod to the guards as they entered the palace. His mother and father were seated at their respective thrones. "My, my, my," the king said, stroking his graying beard, "what do we have here?" He looked down upon Virgil who was carelessly trying to pick some dirt from under his fingernail. Roman elbowed him in the ribs which finally got his attention. "I'm Virgil Knight, Prince of Vigorium, uh, your highness," he half-heartedly bowed and avoided making any eye contact with the other royals. 

"Mmm… and why are you standing before me?"

"It's kinda a long story, " he admitted. 

Roman smirked and happily stepped forward, "which I'm happy to tell you in great detail." Virgil suppressed a groan. The prince once again went off on a tangent of storytelling. Giving each character a different voice, he made sure to make Virgil's especially whiney, and made plenty of wild gestures. His voice raised and lowered as the dramatic parts of their venture turned into the peaceful ones. As suspense hung in the air he waited to make proper dramatic timing before bursting into an action scene. Prince Roman was quite the storyteller, although Virgil was behind him mocking every overdramatic gesture. 

The king and queen's eyes widened at the mention of marriage. You could see the king's face get redder by the second. "Marriage?" He bellowed, "that wench wants to marry her son off to mine? Unacceptable! Tell her she should have put more effort into courting him properly and not send him off to another prince! That boy's a mess!" Roman tilted his head and glanced at Virgil's saddened and slightly angry face. 

Two princes marrying, he thought, it's unheard of. He never heard of a same-sex couple before, he had never even considered it. Growing up he was taught that every prince has a princess, they get married, get their happily ever after, and the end. The prince has always wanted a happily ever after, but he'd always assumed it was going to be with one of the princesses. But he didn't like men, no, definitely not, he didn't like Virgil at all, that should be proof enough. Though curiosity nagged at the back of his mind. How would that even work? What's so bad about it that's causing Father to yell? Is it a bad thing? Remus crept in his mind. He had a boyfriend, but he's Remus. He's insanely weird and upside down compared to all of society. Roman hadn't batted an eye when he found out about Janus. 

The Queen stood with all the elegance of a poisoned apple with a surgery glaze. "Now dear, is that any way to treat a guest? I apologize on my husband's behalf, we usually pride ourselves on the utmost hospitality," she gave him a sly wink, "however, there is truth in his words. We cannot allow this marriage to go through." It felt like the room exhaled. The boys were relieved and confused. A mix of feelings bubbled up in the dark prince's stomach. "Thank you, Mother," Roman bowed, “but what are we going to do with him? Queen Kamila has already delivered her threats if the marriage does not go through,” the king dismissed him with a wave of his hand. “Let her throw her temper tantrum, our real concern is the people. This could cause a… commotion among the common.” He spoke slowly and carefully, choosing each word before speaking it. 

Roman could see through the cracks in his father’s words, there was something he was keeping from him, something crucial. Sensing her son’s drifting thoughts, Queen Reina took a sharp breath before continuing her husband’s explanation, “They may have an outrage, we want to keep them happy and gullible. Therefore, we are accepting of our son marrying a prince.” 

“Ok, but you're not, so what’s the plan?” Virgil muttered

“You’re engaged, you will act engaged for the public, then at the last minute before the wedding, something will supposedly go wrong and we’ll send him home,” the queen spoke, giving Virgil a small condescending look. 

Roman wasn’t quite as loving of this plan as simply booting him out. It sounded insane, plus, he didn’t even want to pretend to be in a relationship with that Emo Nightmare. Some part of him deep down exhaled, he wouldn’t have to chase after princesses for a while. He would be “engaged” to a man, an unusual warmth bubbled to the top of his stomach and a lump formed in his throat. 

The prince panicked and shoved the feeling down as far as he could. He snapped back to reality, his heart beating faster and a cold sweat on the back of his neck that was almost nauseating. Any emotion that strange should be locked away in his internal closet, never to see the light of day again. It was a sensation beyond his explanation, a flash of every emotion he could think of wrapped in a blanket of confusion. 

“Princey?” Virgil asked, giving him, ‘What are you even doing?’ look. “Oh, ur, sorry, carry on,” he cleared his throat and avoided eye-contact with either of his parents. “Tomorrow we’ll announce you to the public, until then, get some sleep. Roman, show Virgil the room across from yours,” the king spoke calmly. He turned to Virgil who was wisely staring at the floor avoiding confrontation, “come on,” Roman sighed, walking towards the twisting staircase. 

☆ ☆ ☆

The castle was different from the one at Vigorium. Whereas Vigorium’s was passed down from generations with the classic sleek gray and black design, Amaregena’s was new and covered in wealth. Two golden twined stair-cases led up to a hall of portraits, stained-glass windows, and gold-threaded tapestries, displaying their wealth and importance. This quite surprised Virgil, he thought Amaregena was supposed to be cold and dark, a place where art comes to die, not this beautiful display. 

As he was so distracted by its extravagance, he didn’t notice the figure that snuck up behind him. “Boo,” was whispered in his ear, despite the juvenile joke, Virgil jumped two feet and spun around in alertness. At first glance, he thought he was seeing double. It was as if Roman was put through a color shuffle. 

The mysterious stranger wore clothes similar to Roman’s, but instead of red and white it was in green and black. He was a few inches shorter and had a slightly darker skin complexion, his brown hair reached down to his earlobes, and the most prominent difference, a thin mustache that looked more like moldy yarn than facial hair stretched across his upper lip. 

The twin was laughing like a hyena, “oh I love scarring children,” Virgil glared back, “I’m not a child!” He protested, the other immediately stopped and studied his face with a frown, “I guess you're not,” a smirk crept up his face. He reached down, taking and laying a gentle kiss on his hand, “my apologies.” Virgil glanced nervously over at the smug Roman, who was leaning against the wall, enjoying the show. After all, what better way of welcoming him into the family than throwing him straight to Remus? “Uh, I’m Prince Virgil Knight of Vigorium,” he said, awkwardly shaking his hand. Remus, still displaying his unsettling smirk said, “yeah, yeah, I’m Remus. I don’t care about that stuff, but what I do care about is why you're being hauled around by my pathetic brother and why I don’t recognize your memorizing eyes,” he said smoothly.

Virgil felt the tips of his ears go hot. He felt uncomfortable, yet, slightly flattered at the same time. No one had ever tried to flirt with him before, but he had a sneaking suspicion this wasn’t Remus’s first time doing this. Besides, he was supposed to be engaged to his brother.

“Ur, it’s my first time here, and I, uh, happen to be engaged to him,” the dark prince responded, slipping his hand from Remus’s. He rolled his eyes, “Sure you are, listen, why don’t you come find me when you get bored of Sparky over there kay, babe? Cool,” Remus skipped off down the hall mumbling some kind of tune about arson. 

Virgil stood there in shock. He’d never been confused and flustered before; it was strange. Especially since they were both guys, but then again he was supposedly marrying one so I guess that didn’t really matter. Roman snickered behind him, and Virgil shot him a glare. “What do you think you're laughing at?” He snapped, “memorizing eyes,” Roman mocked his brother’s voice and added some dramatic flowy gestures before bursting into laughter. Virgil simply glared, his face getting hot, but this time from embarrassment.

He’s so childish, he thought, out of all the princes and princesses why did it have to be him? Virgil gave a gentle shove to the hysteric prince. “No need to get physical, princess,” he grinned. The dark prince took a breath to protest against the degrading nickname, but quickly let it go knowing there was no point in fighting someone so immature. “Whatever,” Virgil grumbled, folding his arms and hunching over himself. 

Roman smiled and led him down to his room swinging the door open. Virgil walked in hesitantly, making sure it wasn’t some kind of torture chamber. Instead, he was greeted with a canopy bed with soft silk curtains and dark wood floors. Jewels were beaded into the curtains and an accent wall faced the bed. Delicate swirls and glimmer twisted around a curvy tree. A white glow illuminated from the center, turning the dark night around it to a shimmering blue light show. Two small silhouettes stood at the base of the tree, a loving mother holding the hand of a little boy. Virgil ran his hand across the dark branches, the texture of the wall similar to the scratchy feeling of bark. 

“Like it?” The prince smiled softly, “uh,” Virgil stuttered, “I guess, why?” He took his hand off the wall. “I painted it,” he said proudly, Virgil’s eyebrows raised skeptically, “really?” Roman scoffed, “of course, It’s how I-...uh, well, never mind.” Virgil shrugged and sat on a three-legged stool next to the small desk, “Who’re the people?” He asked, despite assuming they were imaginary. Roman sat across from him and shrugged, “I saw a mother and a little boy holding hands under this tree in the kingdom. I thought it was a nice idea to add,” he explained, as Virgil nodded along. 

A moment of awkward silence followed before Roman stood, “I’ll leave you alone,” he hesitated, reaching his hand to the back of his neck, “I’m the door across from yours if you need anything,” he offered, then exited closing the door behind him. 

Quiet fell across the room, it was now dark outside, the sound of wind rustling outside and the waft whispering in his ears. It may have not meant anything, but to him, Roman’s words sounded like a silent communion. A peace treaty that meant more than an outstretched hand. He was still as annoying as ever, but if they wanted to make this ruse work they needed to at least tolerate each other. Virgil was determined to get back home and see his sister. 

The satchel resting on his hip started to weigh him down. He slipped it off and the journal fell out of its pouch. His promise rang through his ears, I'll keep a diary, and when I return, which I will, I'll give it to you to read. Then you'll know everything that happened while I was gone. Within seconds the journal was thrown onto the desk and opened to the first page. With a pen in hand, he wrote the first sentence in black ink.

Dear Charlotte,

I miss you.


	7. Electric Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Oh look, I'm alive. I refuse to give up of this story! I have a lot of big surprises and plot twists planned 😏. I can't just give that up! On to the story!

Roman screamed as the knife twisted in his stomach. His vision turned red and he fell to the ground staring up at his killer. The wound oozed with warmth as the rest of his body went cold as ice. His head became fuzzy and he had trouble forming his thoughts. Virgil smirked down at him with the prince’s blood smeared across his face and hands. Kneeling next to Roman, he whispered “no one actually cares about you or your feelings,” he used the knife to tilt his chin up and straddled him just above the wound. At this point, Roman didn’t have the strength to fight the posing, he could barely make out Virgil’s smirk. “You’re too childish to function, let alone find someone to love your stupid selfish ass. You're so stone-faced you can’t even realize you’re turning into your father. You should be thanking me really, this way you won’t have to deal with the rest of your pathetic life,” he looked down, expressionless. His marble eyes were cold and dangerous, different from the soft, timidness from before. He grabbed Roman by the hair and slammed his head into the concrete below, but there was no longer a floor.   
He fell back, regaining his vision before being thrust back up. Roman gasped and his hands darted to his stomach. The wound was gone, but the twist of the knife still lingered in the pit of his abdomen. The boy stood cautiously, his shaking breaths echoing through the darkness around him. W-What's happening? He spun to see if he could spot the slightest sign of light. Panic rose in his chest. He hated the dark. Everything bad happened in the dark. The prince started getting flashbacks to a night long ago from which his fear stemmed. The forest, the lantern, crying, his tree, creatures reaching out for him. He shook it off and forced himself to focus on something else. The fear of the dark and the confusion of the stabbing mixed together and made him want to hurl.   
He caught a glimpse, from the corner of his eye, of a flash. Roman spun toward it frantically. A small light flickered like a dying star as Roman started running toward it. It's power slowly faded out before completely disappearing, leaving Roman in the darkness of his own shadows. Everything seemed to be closing in on him, the darkness itself shrinking him into a box until he fell to his knees, letting out a wail and pressing his palms to his temples.   
The dashing prince shot up in his bed, his heart beating a million miles an hour and sweat dripping down his neck. He slowly untensed as he concluded it was but a dream. Roman let out a sigh of relief and flopped back onto his pillow. Virgil’s cold eyes flashed into his mind, sending a twinge of fear down his body. He hadn’t had a nightmare for quite some time. The last one he had involved Remus, a basket of pastries, and a shadow demon, now that one was interesting. However, that one was different. More terrifying, more real than all of the previous. Roman let out a huffy breath as he tried to cover his eyes from the morning sun. He’d always been a morning person but today was not his day. Virgil and he had to get all dressed up in stuffy clothes, go out in the village, and make the not so grand announcement. They were getting married. He dragged himself out of bed and went to the closet. His royal attire was front and center for pristine events, and his casual clothes were set aside.   
An expertly crafted red velvet cape that flowed down to the floor. A crisp white tunic with golden clasps was tucked into red-stained silk pants. Roman changed with the speed of a snail trapped in molasses, swinging the heavy cape around his shoulders he clipped it around his neck. He slugged out of the room and met face-to-face with Virgil coming out of his own quarters. Roman looked him up and down, hasn’t changed yet? Heathen, he thought. “What?” Virgil snapped, not appreciating the disgusted stare. "Nothing, nothing," Roman said, putting his hands up, "just admiring the attire."   
Virgil rolled his eyes, "maybe if the closet had any clothes in it I would've changed."   
"Doubt it."  
"Shut it, Princey."  
The duo made their way down the winding staircase and to the kitchen. The others had already beaten them there. Remus sat with his feet on the table and gnawing at a pastry while the queen and king ate, quietly judging their youngest. Roman smiled and threw his cape back with a flick of his hand. "Good morning family!" He smiled, they looked over blankly before returning to their food. Roman slouched with a disapproving groan. His family clearly didn’t appreciate his theatrics. Virgil took Roman’s seat at the table and grabbed a blood-red apple, tossing it gently between his hands.  
“Excuse you that's my seat,” Roman scoffed.  
“Then you should’ve walked faster,” Virgil taunted.   
Roman swept the chair out from under him, making Virgil land on the floor with a thud. “Hey!” Virgil protested, as Roman laughed. The queen looked up with a stare only a mother could muster, causing both boys to stop in their tracks. “You two need to pull it together! Your marriage announcement is in less than two hours and your fighting like dogs! This plan will never work if you can’t get along, so what I’m going to need you to do is suck it up and play nice for the day. Virgil, get dressed, there are fresh robes in the closet. Go.” The timid boy didn’t squander the chance to escape her scolding. He quickly stood and returned to his quarters, leaving behind the red apple. Roman watched him snake his way up the stairs, hoping for an excuse to escape his mother.  
“And you,” She glared, “you need to stop picking fights.”   
“But Mother! He was the one that sa-”  
“Eh! I don’t want to hear it!”  
Roman huffed and sunk in his seat. He hated it when his mother treated him like he was five. It was bad enough his parents jerked him around like a puppet, but they didn’t have to patronize him. His eyes drifted over to Remus, who looked disappointed that he didn’t get another chance to flirt with Virgil. Ew, he thought. Roman grabbed a piece of toast spread with fresh jam and scarfed it down. He stood and the dark prince walked back into the dining room. He wore similar attire to Roman; a plum-colored velvet cape flowed to the ground, with a black collared tunic tucked into matching plum pants. Virgil stood next to Roman as if waiting for instruction, this gave Roman the opportunity to say what he first thought, “emo,” he whispered, Virgil shoved his elbow in his ribs.   
The king lifted his head, “General Logan and the medic will escort you. Your mother and I will be close behind.” The duo nodded obediently. They headed out and got in the royal carriage, two more men, Logan and Patton, joined them a few minutes later. "Hi!" Patton smiled joyfully, sticking his hand out to Virgil. "Um, hey," he replied, hesitantly shaking the offered hand. Logan stayed silent across from Roman. The dashing prince wasn’t quite sure why the medic was coming, but he didn’t complain. Patton always brought a sort of joy with him wherever he went. Hopefully, his positive energy will drown out Virgil’s negative aura. “So this is your fiancé?” Logan asked skeptically.   
Roman went pale. Logan was there when they broke into his room and Virgil tore mud off his face and they hadn’t exactly been acting like the most loving couple. “Yes!” Roman said confidently, wrapping his arm around Virgil’s torso and yanking him into his side. The dark prince yelped, limbs flailing as his ribs slammed against Roman’s. He smiled as big as he could, making it look even more plastic. Patton giggled, “you two are adorable!” Logan crossed his arms across his chest, “sure,” he murmured. Virgil not so gently shoved him away, passive-aggressively smiling at the other.   
“Uh, we don’t like showing affection around other people.”   
“I see.”  
Virgil and Patton continued talking and snickering to one another. He couldn’t hear much but Roman caught fragments of their conversation. ‘Roman’, ‘blisters’, ‘baby’, ‘Remus’, and ‘sword’ were among the many words that he caught from their conversations. He couldn’t help but get curious, they kept saying his name so they were clearly talking about him, but whenever he looked over at them Virgil would send him a death glare almost as terrifying as his mom’s. Logan’s lack of conversation skills didn’t help either. Logan would always end up talking about the scientific anatomy of some mystical creature or buttonhole him into an hour-long lecture about responsibility. This conversation’s topic was on Sphinx’s. He couldn’t blame Logan though, his life wasn’t nearly as interesting as Roman’s.   
Around half an hour later, the carriage rolled to a halt and royal guards opened the carriage doors. The men stepped out, relieved to be free from the stuffy prison. Roman took in the surrounding area. The decor wasn’t the most cheerful. Most of the colors being various shades of black and white. However, Roman couldn’t complain about the setup. They were on the West side of town at the outside theater. A small podium was built on the stage to hold up to twelve people. Everything was made out of sleek grey stone and metal. Royal guards already positioned themselves around the theater, among the rows of seating, either side of the stage, and on the stage. The decor was almost as lively as their moods.   
“I see you spared no expense,” Virgil snickered, Roman turned to glare before remembering Patton and Logan were within earshot. He plastered on a forced smile and gave him a not so gently pat on the head, “anything for you my dear.” Virgil thought he was going to throw up. Guards escorted the two to the stage where they sat open simple stools. “Wow the show out is great,” Virgil mumbled, gesturing to the empty stands.  
“Don’t be such a downer, the peasants will arrive soon.”  
“Peasants?”  
“Well, that’s what they are.”  
Virgil laughed.  
Roman glared at him and shoved his elbow into his ribs. They started to squabble before Logan stepped in. "Quit it. No one wants to listen to a lover's quarrel, and I doubt King Barret will be pleased to hear you two argued in front of the royal guards. Shame you." Logan stood behind them, watching like a hawk. Roman could feel his eyes on the back of his head and it sent a chill down his spine. Logan was an intimidating man, not only because of his military background but because of his robotic demeanor and sour attitude. Even after Logan pretty much raised him, his scorn was still greatly feared. People started spilling into the theater just as the second carriage pulled up. Virgil scanned his eyes over the audience and a knot tightened in his stomach. He wasn’t used to big crowds, especially if those crowds were filled with such intimidating faces. He tried his best to not make eye-contact with any of them while Roman’s face dropped.   
Logan taught him never to smile around his people unless it was one of his weekly prances around the city. Right now, however, was a time to show power and authority, which meant no emotion. As Queen Regina and King Bearett were escorted up the stage as more people filed in. It was a decent turnout, for the lower class citizens were not invited to such important events. Patton quickly shuffled across the stage, dragging seats for both the king and queen behind him. Queen Regina sat next to Roman as the king took front stage. “Bow before your king!” He bellowed, his raspy voice bounced off the surrounding huts. The subjects executed a deep bow of respect. “I have called this event in honor of my son.” Roman held in a scoff and pursed his lips together. The king continued, “Four years we have awaited him to choose the person to rule beside him. He’s faced dragons, trolls, every beast in the kingdom! Just to find the one he calls…” A sour look came over his face, “husband. Virgil Knight of the Vigorium kingdom!” The crowd applauded, some with looks of confusion, others with great joy. King Bearett turned on his heel and marched back to his seat.   
Roman began standing when he felt Virgil tug his arm, “why are you standing?” Virgil hissed.   
Roman rolled his eyes and whispered, “we need to go speak, duh.”  
“What?!” He whisper yelled, “no one told me, I don’t have anything prepared!”  
“And you think I do?”  
Virgil groaned and stood. Roman offered his arm and cocky flashed a smile. The other prince mocked his smile and took it. They walked to the front of the stage and Roman projected his voice across the theater. “Today marks the future of Amaregena. The next generation of not just one king, but two.” He glanced towards Virgil with a small smile, but apparently, the emo nightmare didn’t understand the concept of acting because he just shot him a glare. “I will joyfully take the throne with my husband’s hand in mine, as well as his love in my heart. I can only hope-” Roman paused as something flashed in the corner of his eye.   
Three figures stood in the corner, thinly veiled by the shadows of the closest exit. They were draped in wine red cloaks with long white robes. The red cloaks flowed to their hips and grey masks hid their faces. Shapeless, charcoal pants went down to their sandaled feet. Only lower classmen wear such poorly crafted sandals, especially in Autumn. “Uh…” Roman stuttered, Virgil tightening his grip on his arm. One of the figures looked up, making eye-contact with the prince, their electric blue eyes burning an image in his head. The figures vanished out of the exit. Roman wanted to run after them, demand who they are, why they’re there, why they had such a strange fashion sense. Everything happened within a few seconds, but it felt like it was in slow motion. Virgil squeezed him so hard Roman thought he cut off the circulation in his arm.   
The prince cleared his throat, “excuse me, I can only hope he feels the same for me.” Roman turned to Virgil and nodded for him to speak, his thoughts still clouded with those mysterious blue eyes. Meanwhile, Virgil panicked. He didn’t know what to say, what to do, how to act. “U-Um,” he stuttered out, looking over the judgmental crowd. His breath caught in his throat and his heartbeat rose in his chest. “I-I, y-yes, um…” He froze and Roman was quick to take over. Curse that boy, he can’t even mumble out a few sentences, he thought. “Now isn’t he gorgeous? Thank you for coming, everyone.” The prince dragged him back to their seats. Virgil was so paralyzed he could barely move his legs. The subjects mumbled out curses and insults as they crowded toward the exits. The dark prince held his hand tightly to his beating heart as if that would somehow numb the feeling of embarrassment. He tried to catch his breath when Roman grabbed his wrist, making him tense in discomfort.   
Once they had all filed out, Roman dragged Virgil backstage for a talk. Honestly, what was that stupid boy thinking? The prince scoffed, “What was that?” Virgil didn’t respond, he only hyperventilated as if he’d ran a mile. “Come on, it was only a few simple sentences,” Roman sighed, Virgil’s eyes met his. “I can’t do that! I’m sorry I can’t just spew bullshit like you can!” He yelled. That’s what pushed Roman over the edge. He was just trying to talk to him and he had no right to yell at him like that. Another rule he learned from Logan was if someone yelled at you, you stay calm. However, Roman completely ignored his teacher and instead went with his first instinct.  
“It’s not that hard! I even went first which bought you time to come up with something!” He replied   
“Oh, sure! At least I didn’t get distracted in the middle of my speech! What happened? You spot something shiny in the crowd?”   
“Ugh! I can’t do this! I can’t deal with an idiot for a husband!”  
“We’re not getting married dingbat this is all set up! Or have you forgotten already?”  
“I-” Roman started, before he saw Virgil’s eyes widen.   
He turned around and spotted Patton standing a few feet away. His eyes wide behind his round glasses, and his hair frizzed from the Autumn humidity. “How much did you hear?” Roman asked wearily, “um…” He shuffled, looking down at his feet, “I kind of heard... everything…”


	8. Vanishing Act

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I've been gone for so long guys! I had my phone taken away then the day I got it back the wifi went out so I couldn't post. But it did give me some time to write! I hope you enjoyed it! 💜

As Virgil turned towards Patton, the clenching in his heart screamed. He felt it building up ever since the incident on stage, but he had tried his best to ignore it. Virgil didn't remember falling, but the next thing he knew he was on his hands and knees. "Virgil!" A voice echoed, he couldn't tell who it was coming from. Two faces appeared above him before he was hoisted to an up-right position, sitting with his back against the wall. His stomach turned. Sweat formed on the back of his neck and his breathing elevated until he was hyperventilating and shaking. He didn't know how else to explain it, it felt like he was dying. Patton and Roman kneeled tentatively on either side of him.   
"What's wrong with him?" Roman asked, clearly shaken. Patton responded calmly and gently, "he's having a panic attack. He'll be ok. That's why I followed you two back here, he was showing symptoms before you took him backstage. But it's ok now. Can I touch your hand, Virgil?" The dark prince nodded through the shaking and Patton gently took his hand. “It’s ok, it’ll be over soon you just try to take deep breaths. Can you talk to me, Virgil?” Patton gave his hand a small squeeze and kept his tone calm. Roman felt terrible. He was yelling at him while he was having a panic attack? God, what kind of fake husband was he? Even an idiot like himself should’ve noticed something was wrong. I’m sorry Virgil, I didn’t mean to, I’m so sorry, he thought. “I-I can’t breathe.” the dark one sputtered.   
“I promise you’ll be ok,” Patton reassured, giving his shaking hand a small squeeze. “Can you name five things you see?”  
Virgil’s glazed eyes bounced around the room. Roman could barely look at him.   
“I can see you, and Roman, and that big curtain thing, and some rope, and a chair.”  
“Good job, you’re doing great Virgil. What about four things you can touch?”  
“Um, you, Roman, the wall, the floor.”  
“Three you can hear?”  
“Your voice, people talking, the horses.”  
“Almost done, two things you can smell.”  
Virgil breathed in through his nose and quickly regretted it, “Uh… Horse manure and sweat.”  
Patton chuckled, “Yeah sorry, it’s like that out in the village. One thing you can taste.”  
Virgil looked up at him, confused, “Taste? I don’t know my tongue? Spit?”   
By then Virgil realized what Patton did. He tricked him into thinking about his senses instead of about what he was feeling. The dark prince was still shaking and he could feel his heart was pumping, but he was more aware of his surroundings and had gained control of his breathing. He took a deep breath and let his head fall back against the wall. Virgil caught a glimpse of Roman on his left. His eyes were glued to the floor and refused to look at him. “So,” Virgil croaked, “I guess you heard about our little secret huh?” Patton shook his head, his blonde curls bouncing, “we can talk about that later. I’m more concerned about you.” Virgil scoffed and fiddled with his sleeves, “I’m fine, but we might as well tell you what's up.” For once, Roman nodded in agreement, "I got this you just… try to relax."   
The prince once again told their story of how they met, and how Virgil's mom blackmailed them into marriage, and finally how they ended up in this fake engagement. Patton nodded along, looking lost at times. "You can't tell anyone, the only people who know are Roman, me, and the king and queen. Even at that, if you mention anything to the queen or king you're dead." Virgil butt-in. “You can trust me!” Patton said confidently, “I’m good with keeping secrets!” Virgil teetered to his feet, he hoped he was telling the truth. The other two stood as well. Roman looked like he wanted to speak, but he didn’t say anything. Patton put his hand on Virgil’s shoulder, “I want you to be careful with this. You could have more of these episodes when no one's around.”  
“What should I do?”  
“Breathe. Get yourself in a quiet, dark place, do the exercise I used or other breathing techniques,” Patton smiled softly, “you’ll be ok.”   
“Thanks…”  
Roman and Patton helped Virgil back to carriages. He hated feeling weak, but Virgil knew he couldn't walk well on his own. First, they tried to wrap their arms around Virgil's waist as he put either arm around their shoulders. However, with the height difference between the three, that didn't work out. Patton was only a few inches taller than Virgil but Roman towered over them both. After a few more attempts of awkwardly trying to figure out how to best support Virgil, Roman got impatient and scooped him up. The dark prince rolled his eyes, "what's your obsession with carrying me?"  
"What's your obsession with always needing to be carried?"  
Virgil grunted in response and the trio made their way back to the carriages.   
Well, that was embarrassing, Virgil thought. He hated the idea of always having to be saved, but then again he had no way of defending himself. Well, there is that one thing he could do… no, what a stupid thought, he scolded himself. Meanwhile, Logan was waiting for them in the carriage with a stern look on his face. "Where have you been?" He asked skeptically. "Virgil was having a little… issue… but he's ok now and we're ready to go!" Patton beamed. Logan looked like he wanted to argue but didn't have the energy to do so. He scooted over and Roman placed Virgil gently next to him as Patton slid in across the way. The two princes' wearily eyed the medic, waiting to see if he'd give them up to Logan, but no such thing. He was as bubbly as ever.   
Sitting next to Logan was almost as terrifying as standing before the king and queen, with his sharp expression and scars across his face he looked more intimidating than anyone back in Vigorium. Virgil's plan was to avoid eye contact at all costs, but when the general started a conversation, it was even more nerve-wracking to find out what would happen if he ignored him. "How are you enjoying Amaregena?" He asked. Virgil shrugged, he could mention the panic attack, the engagement, the being kicked out, the feeling like a pawn for his own mother, but he decided to keep quiet. “I can imagine it is quite different from your motherland,” Logan tried to keep the conversation afloat, “I guess,” Virgil mumbled, “It’s a lot greyer. The people are more intimidating, your art is lifeless.”   
“Lifeless?”  
“Yes, even in the family portraits in the castle, there's no life behind their eyes. I can’t feel any emotion behind the strokes. It’s lifeless.”   
“Interesting…” Logan pondered, speaking mostly to himself. Virgil almost forgot there was more to war than blood and mass murder. Since he’s the general Virgil expected Logan to be more… Stabby. Yet, the way he spoke made him believe otherwise. What he said wasn’t entirely true anyway. There had been one piece of art in Amaregena that had life, the tree painted in his room. The one Roman painted. However he would never say it out loud, no need to give Roman an even bigger head.   
The dark one decided to try to carry on the conversation, “soooo, you're the general, how’d that happen?” Logan considered for a moment before speaking, “I shall make this a vague yet informative story as to cater to your short attention span. My mother and father are nobles, my father is on the council with my mother by his side. They had me early into their marriage at only twenty-four. Meanwhile, King Benett and Queen Renia were having trouble having an heir. They finally had Roman at thirty-nine, calling him their miracle baby. See, my father and Roman's father are close, they’re the same age and grew-up together, so when he heard of the baby's arrival he offered me up as a gift. I was to become a great general and a mentor for the prince. I went into the knights academy and came out at the top of my class. I started training Roman when I was twenty and he was five. Ever since then I've been the general and the princes' mentor," Logan explained, making fierce eye-contact throughout the tale. Virgil followed along, trying not to show how uncomfortable the eye-contact made him. "So… you didn't actually want to be a general?" The prince asked, trying not to provoke him. "As a child I hoped for a more scholarly career. However, I am grateful for the life I live." He broke eye-contact and looked out the window, "and you, Prince Virgil," Logan snuck a glance at him, "did you ever wish to be a prince?" As the boy opened his mouth to ask what he meant the carriage slammed to a stop sending him flying into Roman.   
"Ugh!" Roman grunted as Virgil's weight hit him. "Sorry…" He grumbled, as he pushed himself off his chest. Normally Roman would've said some annoying comment like, 'Oh its ok, I understand I'm hard to resist', but he said nothing. The dashing prince set him back in his seat and got out, Logan and Patton close behind. At this point, Virgil had regained his strength from the panic attack and followed the others out of the wagon. The medic and the general bowed to the princes’ before returning to their quarters.   
“What was that?!” The duo turned to see a furious King Benett exiting the wagon with the queen on his heels. Virgil found himself frozen in fear, an angry, tall man, with a bushy beard was about to scream at him, how can he not be petrified? Gee, the only thing that could make this better would be going into another panic attack right about now, Virgil thought. King Bennett stood there fuming, apparently it wasn't a rhetorical question I like he had hoped. "I-I'm sorry, I just-" Roman cut in, his hardened expression never leaving his face, "It was my fault. I didn't tell him that we had to give speeches so he was unprepared, and I was annoying and distracting him. It was my fault, don't punish him for it." Virgil was taken aback by Roman's words. Sure, he didn't tell him they were giving speeches and that was a shitty thing to do, but he didn't know about his stage fright or just how badly he would choke. But I guess the price paid was much worse than either of us imagined. Now the whole kingdom thinks the prince's fiance, the future king, is weak, if I couldn't even do a public speech how will they trust me to rule? Most of all, what would they think of Vigorium? Virgil tried to shake off the thought. It doesn't matter anyways, it's not like I actually care what they think. I'm not going to rule them. I have my own kingdom to look out for. But that just made it worse. Virgil couldn't even imagine running his own kingdom, how will he ever be fit for king if he can't even swallow the thought? Queen Reina placed her hand on her husband's shoulder, staring sternly at her son. "We’ll talk after supper. For now, go to your rooms. This matter will not go unspoken of." Roman bowed and Virgil followed his lead.   
The two started towards the gate in tense silence. "You didn't have to do that you know," Virgil croaked, "I was the one that fumbled." He kept his eyes on the road ahead, not wanting to make eye contact. "No," Roman kept the same expression and monotone voice he talked to his parents with, "But it's not because you're my friend, or that I like you or anything. I just don't like when other people get blamed for someone else's mistakes. Even if I'm the one that made it. It's unfair." Virgil nodded, unsure of how to reply. There was another moment of silence. The gravel crunching under their feet and the birds cooing softly in the trees. Roman let out a sigh and let his shoulders slump, “I also just wanted to say… I’m sorry…” He spoke under his breath, as if he was reluctant to say it. Virgil looked over at him in disbelief, “what?” he asked. “Well God don’t make me say it again!” He huffed, “I said, I’m sorry Virgil. I shouldn’t have yelled at you, but really, I didn’t know you were having a panic attack and I’m sorry.” Virgil stared at him in silence. He never thought he’d hear Roman apologize to anyone, let alone him. Part of him wanted to milk the opportunity, ask him ‘Oh what was that?’ and make him say it again, but Virgil could tell by Roman’s face how guilty he’d been feeling about the situation. Is that why he hasn’t even been looking at me, Virgil thought, guilt?   
“It’s fine, Princey, I guess I should apologize too then. I’m sorry for asking if you got distracted by something shiny.” He grumbled. The other chuckled in response, “as mad as that made me, I mean, yeah, I kinda did get distracted by something shiny.” Virgil’s serious face faltered, trying not to crack-up at the thought. “Y-Yeah?” He wheezed, trying to stifle the laugh in the back of his throat. Princey cracked a smile, but before he could explain what he’d seen they had reached the gates. “I’ll see you later, after my mom puts me in time-out,” Roman giggled softly. Virgil playfully rolled his eyes as they waved and went their separate ways.   
Once he was back in his room, the first thing he did was take that heavy, annoying cape off. The thing weighed about a thousand pounds. Virgil face-planted onto the bed. A nap would be nice, he thought, but before he could get comfortable, Charlotte’s journal caught his eye from the desk. “I guess it has been a pretty eventful day,” he murmured to himself. Virgil dragged himself out of bed and opened up the journal. He expected the first page to be filled up with the writing he had written last night, but to his surprise, it had vanished. Maybe I accidentally wrote on the wrong page, Virgil thought. He skimmed through it. He skimmed, and skimmed, and skimmed. He’d gone through the whole journal at least twenty times, but there was no sign of any writing. Virgil checked the pen and ink he had used. The small pot of ink was a quarter empty, just as he remembered.   
Ok, so I’m not hallucinating. I really did write in the journal.  
It was a tedious task, but he flipped through each and every page individually. It took an insufferable amount of time, but at least he could say with confidence, there was absolutely no trace of the journal entry. “What’s happening?” Virgil grumbled, “I couldn't have written in any other book, there aren’t any other books in here!” He said, starting to get annoyed. Maybe Roman had played a stupid prank on him, but deep down he knew that wasn't true. He kept wracking his brain for any logical reason this might have occurred. But he came up empty-handed. Virgil sighed, whatever happened to the entry, it was no longer there. Reluctantly, he sat down and dipped the pen into the black ink. He wrote about the events of the day, the big stage, all of the people, his panic attack, his talk with Logan in the carriage, even the strange occurrence of the journal he was writing in. Once he was satisfied, Virgil closed the journal and placed the pen back in the ink.   
He spent the next two hours or so in blissful sleep before Remus came and got him for supper. It wasn’t too interesting, boring dinner talk and Remus trying to flirt with him, but the food was good. After dinner, Roman was held back to have his talk with the queen and king while Remus and Virgil got excused. Roman shot Virgil a look like ‘please kill me’ and he had to resist snickering. Meanwhile, the other twin attempted to escort Virgil back to his room but he politely declined. “Your loss,” Remus shrugged. He changed and went to bed, glad that the eventful day was over.   
It was over, right? Wrong. It happened around 2 AM, a light knock came from his door and Virgil bolted up in bed. He already had trouble sleeping as it was, so he was definitely not happy. In addition to that, it scared him out of his mind. Who would have the nerve to wake someone up at 2 AM? The answer was obvious. Virgil opened the door. “What do you want Princey?” He grumbled, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Roman looked at him seriously, and in a stern tone said, “It’s Patton and Logan. They said they want to talk.”


End file.
